The present invention relates to a method and system for producing beverage containers. Such methods and systems have been known for a long time from the prior art. In particular such methods are known in which first of all plastic parisons are transformed into plastic containers and then the plastic containers thus transformed are filled with a liquid and in particular a beverage. In other words, in such methods it is usual for a plurality of components or sub-products are guided relative to one another, such as for example the plastic containers themselves, the closures thereof and the beverage to be bottled.
However, in the event of a product change but also in the event of an end of production often the problem occurs that the residual products must be disposed of and that moreover long switchover times are required. Therefore, methods are also known from the prior art in which such a product change should be made easier. Thus for example DE 10 2008 037708 A1 describes a method for handling beverage containers. In this method a part-quantity of the product located in a feed line is detected in order thus to be able more easily to calculate the quantities still required. The complete content of the disclosure of this publication is hereby incorporated by reference into the subject matter of the present application. In particular the content of paragraphs [0008] to [0030] of this document is made the subject matter of the present disclosure.
In the previous prior art it is left to the operators of an installation when to stop the feeding of the objects for example to a transport device such as a conveyor belt. In this case the experience and the motivation of the operating staff plays a crucial role. A further possibility known from the prior art known is an iterative approach which by trial and error determines the respective numbers which are then stored in a controller. However, this approach must also be carried out in a complex manner for every product which is processed at the customer's site.
If in the prior art the feeding of the respective objects is stopped too early or too late, this leads to stoppage of the plant or to a slowing down due to long emptying times. In addition it is no longer possible to react to different circumstances, such as static charging, pourability, etc., which affect the quantity of components located on the transport equipment. Therefore situations occur more frequently here which are associated with an increased changeover time or with a wasting of product.
Furthermore during the commissioning or after a product change very many open issues have to be dealt with, such as for example the estimation of the number of products located on a transport device.
The object of the present invention therefore is to provide a method and a system in which the transport devices are also run as empty as possible at the end of production or a product change and thus a saving of time is achieved during emptying and restarting.